Sunday, February 3, 2008

Pats, G Men...who saw this match up coming...the G Men were probably better than only the Bucs going into the post season...and this includes both conferences....But that's why they play the games. The Giants caught lightning in a bottle at the perfect time led by their quarterback who still hopefully has his horseshoe shoved up you know where.

Can the Giants win this game? Probably not. There are mis matches all over the field. But, they have no pressure. The Giants aren't supposed to win this game. In fact, they weren't even supposed to be in this game. If the Giants lose, regardless of what their players may say, it was a successful year for them and a surprising run. New England on the other hand, must win and if they lose their season is a failure and no one cares about their 18-0 run. This was previewed in week 17. New York had nothing to play for. They had no pressure...win or lose it didn't matter. The Patriots were playing for their perfect season and looked tense and nervous. They got lucky to escape New Jersey with a win. The Giants must build on that and play a near flawless game or else this could get away from them real quick.

What must happen for the Giants to win? Well to me it's simple. Three things must happen and they are all pretty obvious. First off, they must win the time of possession. This means Brandon Jacobs needs to control the game. He must get 25 carries and run for over 100 yards. Eli, yeah he has played well lately, but the Giants don't want this game in his hands if they can help it. Mostly because if they get into a shootout they will not be able to keep up. They need to give their defense plenty of rest and keep Brady on the bench where he can't hurt them. Secondly, they must win the turnover battle. This goes without saying. If they turn it over we could be looking at 49-10. Anything more than one turnover for the Giants spells disaster. They need to pressure Brady...he can throw interceptions as shown in the AFC CHampionship game where he threw three. Finally, they need to make a big play on Special Teams or score a touchdown on defense. They need to get some cheap points. Hixon ran one back in week 17...doing the same today will help. If all three of these things go the Giants way, they could win the game.

So, what do I think will happen? I want the Giants to win this game. However, I need to look at this game for what it is...a team that is loaded with talent versus a team that got on a roll at the right time, a 16-0 team vs. a 10-6 team...a team with Eli Manning at quarterback versus a team with Tom Brady at quarterback. Basically what I am hoping for is a miracle. I won't be able to stand the coronation of Tom Brady and the Patriots for 6 months. I will want to throw up every time I turn on ESPN. This team cheated but yet no one cares and everyone is just crowning them the best team ever. Oh well...maybe the Pats first loss in 2 years will come next year vs. the Bills, that is all I can hope for. Or hopefully Eli Manning really is good and out plays Brady...after all, I have been wrong about him for the past month.